This week has been unseasonably hot and humid here in New Jersey. I’m talking 100 degrees F with a million percent humidity. Stupidly I went outside for a run at around noon, which is probably the absolute worst time I could have gone and nearly passed out. After that I vowed to stay inside until Mother Nature decided to give me my beautiful 85 degree, sunny and breezy weather back. Therefore, I had to abandon my new love for summer grilling and get back in the kitchen. I mean, you couldn’t pay me to go outside and cook on the grill. This week’s recipe is going to blow your mind! I’ll tell you straight, I wasn’t too sure about lettuce wraps. I love my carbs way too much to give up the wrap. I mean, isn’t that the best part? Prepare to be amazed because you won’t miss the wrap at all with this super tasty, flavorful recipe for Teriyaki Turkey Lettuce Wraps.

Once all your vegetables are ready to go, add one tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil to a large pan on medium heat. Add your onion and cook until they become translucent. Then, add the ground turkey breast and garlic (4 cloves, minced) to the same pan, breaking up the turkey into small pieces. While the turkey breast is cooking, you can start to prepare your teriyaki sauce. This sauce is legitimately heavenly. It completely makes the dish so you want to make sure to follow the recipe as stated. Add soy sauce, water, red wine vinegar, brown sugar, granulated sugar, garlic (3 cloves, minced) and ginger to a small sauce pan on medium heat. (Make sure to use low sodium Kikkoman soy sauce. This seems to be one of the brands with the lowest amount of sodium without using a lot of chemicals.) Cook until sugar is dissolved. Mix together the cornstarch and warm water until incorporated. Slowly add this mixture to the sauce pan, stirring with a whisk continuously. You will see it start to bubble. Continue cooking until the sauce begins to thicken to desired consistency. Make sure to cook long enough for the sauce to thicken, but not too long that it burns. If you hold up the whisk and the sauce does not drip, you’re good to go!

To start off, prep all your vegetables. It’s best to chop all your vegetables first so that you don’t have to rush once you start cooking. You’re going to dice 1 large onion, coarsely chop 1 head of broccoli, mince 7 cloves of garlic (4 for the turkey mixture and 3 for the sauce), and mince 1 teaspoon of ginger. The first time I made this recipe I shredded my own carrots. Let me tell you, that was a workout in and of itself. The second time, I bought shredded carrots. So, it’s up to you! You will need approximately 1 cup of shredded carrots. If you’re grating your own carrot, you can do so while you prep the vegetables.

Once your turkey breast is almost fully cooked, add the broccoli, carrots, and edamame. Pour the teriyaki sauce into the pan with the turkey breast and vegetables and mix until fully incorporated. Place a couple spoonfuls of the turkey breast and vegetable mixture into each leaf of romaine lettuce, top with scallions and then you’re ready to eat! You could also serve with a side of your favorite rice or grain, like brown rice or farro.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did! As you can see, I couldn’t even snap a picture of Joe’s plate fast enough before he started eating. I’m pretty sure we finished dinner in less than 10 minutes.